Mom
by Alice Forshadow
Summary: Varian never expected to be found by a firewood collector. Nor did he expect for her to actually believe his story about his father being trapped in crystals and take him to Corona, nor did he expect her to actually take him on a journey to find a cure for the rocks. After his father, Varian never expected to have an adventurer become the one thing in his life he never got. A mom.
1. Chapter 1: The Way There

The snow was cold.

Extremely.

That's what Varian decided when he noticed he was still less than halfway to Verona. Only science can get you so far.

He looked out at Corona.

Why. Why had he not listened to his father at first? Maybe they could have left. Found somewhere new to live. Maybe the rocks would be discovered by the guards and stopped before any of this-

"Are you okay?" asked a voice from behind him.

Varian looked up at a woman on the back of her horse, behind him. At first, Varian thought that she was Rapunzel by her long blonde hair-but then realized that her hair wasn't in a braid- rather blonde and tied in a bun- and was several feet shorter. Not to mention there were googles that covered her eyes to keep the snow out, and she wore a rather rough looking thick winter coat, thick pants, and a wool hat, with an empty cart being towed behind the horse.

"This isn't the place for a young child to be wandering around. The snow's picking up. You could freeze to death out here." replied the woman. She reached out her hand to Varian. "Where are you heading? I can take you there."

Varian looked at how far away Verona was and then up at the woman. He took her hand, and she helped him on the back of her horse.

"Where you heading kid?" she asked him, snapping the reins of her horse as they started to trot along to town.

"Verona." Varian responded. "To see the princess."

"The princess, ay kid?" she asked jokingly. "You guys friends?"

"She owes me a favor." he responded to her.

The woman laughed. "Kids these days." she said to herself.

Varian was slightly irritated.

"But I'm serious miss!" he responded urgently. "My father- he's going to get stuck in black crystals!"

Suddenly, the woman stopped. She looked at him urgently.

"Crystals? Like, actual crystals?" asked the woman urgently. "Not a joke. What chemicals did you use to make them?"

"I was trying to get rid of these black rocks-" Varian explained.

"Black rocks?" asked the woman. "Like, big, spiky black rocks that are unbreakable and have obliterated villages near that creepy tower where the princess was held captive?"

Entire villages.

Varian swallowed and nodded.

"Hold on kid." the woman replied, snapping the reins of her horse. "Come on Lightning. To Corona!"

The horse neighed and took off towards the kingdom. Varian nearly fell off at first from how fast the horse was going, but he quickly held onto the woman's coat to kep from falling off.

This was happening.

Someone who believed the story that he was telling.

Finally.

 **This is Alice Foreshadow, heading back down the rabbit hole!**


	2. Chapter 2: The Way Back

Abigail was walking through the snow filled streets of Corona, looking for sticks. She was a firewood collector, after all. And there was too much snow in the woods to cut any trees safely without risking wet wood or starting an avalanche. But even Corona's streets where full of snowdrifts. Still, the wood would eventually dry and be able to be used again.

The wind and cold was picking up again, causing Abigail to have to squint to see through her googles again, brushing the thin layer of snow off of them. She sighed and looked up at her horse.

"I'm getting too old for this." she told her horse.

The horse gave her a look signaling _You're only thirty four._

It was quite a day for both of them. First, have the snow pick up when she was just ready to cut down the perfect oak, then get lost trying to get back home, then somehow find a young boy trying to get all the way to Corona from the mountains. On days like this, Abigail questioned her lifestyle to be a lumberjack like her parents, living like a hermit outside of Corona. Maybe that boy and his father grew up the same way.

The poor kid. Abigail wondered if the royal family would help him. Still, the blizzard made things busier than ever. The family might not help him. She prayed that hopefully the boy would at least get a few guards to help him out. It probably wouldn't happen, but Abigail always thought on the bright side.

Occasionally, she would get a few people ask if she was cold and wanted to spend the night in their house, but Abigail politely refused, reassuring them that her home wasn't that far away.

Making it to the castle, she looked at the firewood to see if there was anything she could give to help the people taking refuge inside. Peeking under the tarp, she only saw a few soggy sticks over her blanket and tools. Not even enough to light a spark.

"But princess! You promised!"

Abigail looked up from her basket at the noise, then saw a young boy being thrown into the snow by her feet by two palace guards.

The boy looked up at her, than back at the palace. He ran to the doors just as they shut, running over to them and pounding on the door.

"Princess! Rapunzel! Please! I'm not asking for much else! Just help my father!" begged the boy.

That was when Abigail noticed.

It was the same boy that she helped get through the woods.

Walking over to him, she held out her hand to him. It took him a minute before turning to look at her.

"You need help with saving your father?" asked Abigail.

"How have you-" he asked, quickly wiping the tears in his eyes away.

"Look- I don't know why I found you again- maybe because we're the only two people walking around Corona in a blizzard or maybe something else, but you need my help." replied Abigail. "I know more about science than you think. For example. The chemicals in those vials are calcium and chloride. They can melt practically anything together- especially ice and snow."

The boy looked at the vials on his staff.

"See? I know my elements." replied Abigail.

"They can't melt through the crystals." replied the boy.

"Then we just need to find something that will." responded Abigail.

"It's not just the crystals." replied the boy. "It's the rocks too. They caused all of this. At least, the mess I got my father in. I thought I could find a way to stop them when they were destroying my village- but I couldn't even get that right."

Abigail put her hand on the boy's shoulder.

"I'm sure you meant well." responded Abigail.

"I just always mess things up." replied the boy. "No matter what. I just- mess up everything. All the time. And I've messed things up- way worse than you know. Maybe- I thought I could be trusted. But I can't. No one can trust me. I barely trust myself."

There was quiet for a few minutes.

"Whether I trust you or not, there's no way I'm letting your father get trapped in a crystal." Abigail told him.

"You're- helping me?" the boy asked in confusion.

"Of course. What kind of person would I be if I wasn't?" she asked. "Look, I've helped a lot of people who come into the woods. I want to help you. Your father. Besides- I've seen what these rocks can do."

"You have?" asked the boy.

"They're unbreakable. Sharp too. They spread fast. I can't even get to the good trees anymore because it's too dangerous for me to go over there." replied Abigail. "Either way- will you trust me?"

The boy looked up at her for several minutes.

"I trust you." he responded.

"Abigail. Lumberjack." she told him.

The boy climbed up on the horse behind her.

"Varian. Alchemist."

 **This is Alice Foreshadow, heading back down the rabbit hole.**


	3. Chapter 3: Village

There was a silence for a while as Abigail and Varian rode through the mountains.

"So, you're an alchemist." Abigail asked him. "What is your main focus?"

"Science. So I can help people with their problems." replied Varian. "But it causes more harm than good most of the time."

"Hey, I made plenty of mistakes when I first started lumberjacking with my folks. Once, I nearly destroyed our house because I thought one of the logs was a tree! If my dad hadn't stopped me, who knows what might've happened to our home." replied Abigail. "If we stop by on our way, I can show you the axe mark."

"Yeah, but you were probably a few years old at most." Varian replied. "I'm almost fourteen. I should be able to make things without messing them up all the time."

"You think adults don't make mistakes as much as children? We make plenty of mistakes. But it's what we do to fix our mistakes that counts." Abigail replied.

That was when she came across the village. It was sunken in by snow and the same black pointy rocks that she saw earlier were everywhere.

"You- live here?" she asked in surprise.

"Used to live here." Varian replied. "Until I ruined it- like I ruin everything."

"Nonsense- the rocks might have gotten here and obliterated everything anyways-" Abigail started to say.

"Just- stop. Please. Stop with the excuses. I'm enough of a disappointment." Varian replied to her.

Abigail focused back on the rocks, which were in the village, interwoven like a maze.

"It'll be too dangerous if we ride through here. Best we walk on foot." Abigail told Varian, getting off the horse, grabbing her pack. Varian followed her.

"Wait here." Abigail said to her horse, petting it gently before walking away, Varian close behind her.

"Where was your father when you last saw him?" asked Abigail.

"In that cave." Varian replied, pointing to a cave that was on the mountain overlooking the village. "It's where we've been living."

Abigail looked up.

This was going to be quite the hike.

* * *

After the two made it up the mountain, they entered the cave.

"Dad!" Varian called. "I brought help!"

There was the answer of silence.

"Maybe he found a way to escape by himself and was on his way to find you-" Abigail started to say.

Then she saw it, glistening from one of the cave walls- amber.

Varian ran through the cave, calling out for his father. Abigail followed after him. She knew about amber- and she wasn't letting Varian see his father trapped in it. What would he think? Was there even a way to get rid of amber?

Abigail made it to where Varian was. There was a makeshift home in the cave's main area- tables, a few beds, scientific machines, a few candles- but Abigail only focused on it a minute.

Varian was standing in front of where his father was enclosed in amber.

"Oh no."

 **In the meantime, I'm hoping to work on this story throughout the summer.**

 **But thank you so much for all the support! It's been a few chapters and there's already six favorites, four follows, a review, and over 200 (229 to be exact)reads! Thank you!**

 **This is Alice Foreshadow, heading back down the rabbit hole!**


	4. Chapter 4: Faults

This was no ordinary father to Varian. This was Quirin. Tears began to fill her eyes as well. She wiped them away quickly and went over to Varian.

The boy looked up in shock and fury, tears in his eyes. Suddenly, he buried his face in his hands and burst into sobbing.

"Varian-" Abigail started to say.

"No! Don't try to comfort me!" Varian exclaimed, lifting his head up and looking at her. "This- this is all your fault!"

"My fault?" asked Abigail.

"If you only got us back here quick enough- or maybe even to the princess- it's her fault! She never came! She should have come with me to try to save my father and now he's like this!" Varian exclaimed. "Maybe-"

"Maybe what? Who are you blaming next? You're blaming everyone but yourself!" exclaimed Abigail. "You haven't even realized that the reason your father is in amber is because you tried to solve a problem by yourself instead of getting help! If you asked the whole guard or even the princess earlier, maybe then thing's wouldn't have even gotten this far! Think about that, and when you realize that, well, come find me!"

Abigail turned around and started to storm out of the cave.

"Wait. I'm sorry. You're right."

Abigail stopped to listen to what Varian was trying to say.

"I'm sorry. You're right." Varian replied "It's- I tried to get help."

Abigail turned around to look back at Varian.

"But- my dad was going to run away. Leave all our problems behind. I was trying to solve the problem because he wouldn't even let me ask." Varian told her, tears filling his eyes again. "And I thought maybe if I solved this problem, he would finally be proud of me. He never is. All I do is mess things up. I couldn't even follow the career I want without him judging me."

 _Classic Quirin._ thought Abigail.

"I know I shouldn't focus on making him happy- but then I keep thinking that if he's not proud of me, who can be?" Varian continued, his tears starting to stream down his face. "I'm always to blame for not being like everyone else. For the choices I make! For not being the son my father wants! For being like my mother! And belive me, the village is not the only thing he wants to run away from!"

Varian was trying to hold back his tears.

"I'm sorry all the time! For everything I do! I just want someone else to be sorry for a change! I'm sorry!" Varian exclaimed through his tears.

Abigail ran over to Varian and hugged him, the boy sobbing into her jacket for a few minutes.

"Varian- if I can tell you one thing is that your father is very proud of you." Abigail replied. "Maybe he just hasn't ever told you. Because you have a lot for people to be proud of you for. And you have quite a talent there. You're smart, brave, maybe a bit stubborn and unmoral, but you never give up. And I'm not letting you give up on saving your father."

"But- how am I going to even figure this out by myself?" asked Varian, wiping the tears from his eyes.

"Not I." replied Abigail. "We."

 **This is Alice Foreshadow, heading back down the rabbit hole!**


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